# Assessment of the relationship between smoking and meniscal injury

## TL;DR

The study found that smoking and the duration of smoking are significantly linked to the severity of meniscal injuries in the knee.

## Contribution

This study establishes a novel correlation between smoking history and the degree of meniscal injury using pack-years and injury grade.

## Key findings

- Smokers had significantly higher rates of meniscal injury compared to nonsmokers.
- Both daily smoking amount and total smoking history correlated with injury severity.
- Smoking and age were significant risk factors for meniscal injury.

## Abstract

To determine whether being a smoker and the years of smoking correlate with
the presence and degree of meniscal injury.

Individuals who underwent magnetic resonance imaging of the knee were divided
into two groups: smokers and nonsmokers. For each smoker, the total smoking
history was calculated by multiplying the daily consumption (packs/day) by
the years of smoking, and the result is expressed as pack-years. In the
evaluation of meniscal injury, the grade of injury was recorded. The
thickness of the subcutaneous adipose tissue, as an indicator of obesity,
was measured at the medial knee on axial plane images. The relationships
that smoking and obesity had with meniscal injury were analyzed
statistically.

A total of 156 individuals were included in the study. The smoker group
consisted of 48 individuals (30.8%), and the nonsmoker group consisted of
108 (69.2%). The meniscus was normal in one (2.1%) of the smokers and in 32
(29.6%) of the nonsmokers (p < 0.0001). The median
subcutaneous adipose tissue thickness was 23 mm and 24 mm in the smokers and
nonsmokers, respectively (p = 0.900). A moderate but
statistically significant correlation was observed between packs/day and
injury grade, as well as between pack-years and injury grade (r = 0.462,
p = 0.001 and r = 0.523, p = 0.001,
respectively). Smoking and age significantly increased the risk of meniscal
injury, by 31.221 times (p = 0.001) and 1.076 times
(p < 0.001), respectively.

Our findings indicate that current smoking and smoking history correlate
significantly with meniscal injury grade.